BURDEN | Meaning, Definition In Cambridge English Dictionary

Meaning of burden in English burdennoun [ C ] uk /ˈbɜː.dən/ us /ˈbɝː.dən/ Add to word list Add to word list a heavy load that you carry: heavy burden The little donkey struggled under its heavy burden. C1 something difficult or unpleasant that you have to deal with or worry about: the burden of responsibilityheavy burden I'm afraid this role may have become too much of a heavy burden for you.burden to My elderly mother worries that she's a burden to me.burden on We need to avoid putting a burden on taxpayers with this project.financial burden Buying a house often places a large financial burden on young couples.

• The war had put an insupportable financial burden on the country.
• A huge burden was lifted from my shoulders when I told my parents about my problem.
• Such a high increase will impose an undue burden on the local tax payer.
• Not until this turbulent region can shuffle off the burdens of the past will it be able to settle peacefully into the community of nations.

Physical supports and supporting

• abutment
• bolster
• bookend
• bracket
• buttress
• cantilever
• load-bearing
• modillion
• mounting
• pier
• pile
• pillar
• prop
• prop something up phrasal verb
• rib
• sinew
• underpin
• unstayed
• unsupported
• weight-bearing

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Difficult things and people Difficult situations and unpleasant experiences

Idiom

the burden of proof burdenverb [ T ] uk /ˈbɜː.dən/ us /ˈbɝː.dən/ to trouble someone with something difficult or unpleasant: burden someone with something I don't want to burden you with my problems. The irony of it is that the new tax system will burden those it was intended to help. Inconvenience

• a pain (in the neck) idiom
• a pain in the arse/backside idiom
• aggravation
• aggro
• awkward
• bore
• bother
• bulky
• disturbance
• drag
• have fun and games idiom
• imposition
• incommode
• incommodious
• incommodity
• palaver
• pinprick
• pisser
• put something out phrasal verb
• tempest

See more results » (Definition of burden from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

burden | American Dictionary

burdennoun [ C ] us /ˈbɜr·dən/ Add to word list Add to word list a duty or responsibility that is hard to bear: I don’t want to be a burden on my children. burdenverb [ T ] us/ˈbɜrd·ən/ to give someone problems, trouble, or responsibilities: He was burdened with debts. (Definition of burden from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

burden | Business English

burdennoun [ C ] uk /ˈbɜːdən/ us Add to word list Add to word list a difficult situation or unpleasant responsibility that you must deal with or worry about: ease/lighten/reduce the burden (on sb) By training additional staff, management could significantly ease the burden on its over-worked personnel.heavy/big/enormous burden I sympathize with the heavy burden of paperwork they have to deal with. the administrative/legal burden the responsibility of paying money that you owe, or the large amount of money that you owe: bear/carry/assume the burden (for sth) If the new law is passed, tax payers will assume the burden for rising energy costs.financial/economic burden He proposed that the state accept the financial burden. a tax/mortgage/loan burden See also debt burden burdenverb [ T ] uk /ˈbɜːdən/ us to make someone responsible for something that is very difficult, unpleasant, or expensive to deal with: be burdened with/by sth Borrowers are already burdened with mortgage extras such as arrangement fees and life assurance cover. a nation burdened by heavy unemployment (Definition of burden from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of burden

burden The letters were a moving plea for relief from the burdens of repeated child-bearing. From the Cambridge English Corpus Why change tax rates to make tax burdens sound more onerous when the status quo gained the same revenues? From the Cambridge English Corpus The transfer of reference to the sick and incapacitated is a minor semantic development: compare the histories of burden's lexical neighbours, bureau, burger and business. From the Cambridge English Corpus One consents not only to actions but also to the holding of certain positions and to the imposition of duties and burdens. From the Cambridge English Corpus Regulators may restrict access to records based on answers to certain questions and add burdens to hospital record-keepers. From the Cambridge English Corpus Tax burdens were arbitrary and unpredictable and the judicial verdicts of royal governors were blatantly dependent upon bribery. From the Cambridge English Corpus The greatest burdens of the war- destruction, disruption of life and economic deprivation- have fallen on the rural population. From the Cambridge English Corpus Although more talented scholars are being drawn to this field of study, it remains burdened with several premises that invite reform. From the Cambridge English Corpus The book is not burdened by excessive reference citations, is very readable and suited to a wideranging audience. From the Cambridge English Corpus In order to make just resource allocation decisions, an impartial appraisal of the burdens of benefits is certainly necessary. From the Cambridge English Corpus The agreement could, for example, be over the sharing of the benefits and burdens associated with the construction and maintenance of an irrigation system. From the Cambridge English Corpus The eldest son tried to bear the brunt of these burdens, but it was not long before he had to leave. From the Cambridge English Corpus Often the two coincided, with those living together dividing state and feudal burdens among themselves. From the Cambridge English Corpus What becomes immediately clear from the figures is that housework disproportionately burdened women. From the Cambridge English Corpus Options for placement continue to be limited, since foster parents are reluctant to take on the additional burdens caused by drug exposure and premature birth. From the Cambridge English Corpus See all examples of burden These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with burden

burden

These are words often used in combination with burden.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

added burdenHowever, on the margins, where older people did live alone and had the added burden of disability or frailty, circumstances were difficult. From the Cambridge English Corpus   additional burdenThese outcomes would all constitute additional burden in general practice. From the Cambridge English Corpus   administrative burdenMonitoring is consigned to institution heads, which invites an almost unrealistic administrative burden. From the Cambridge English Corpus   These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors. See all collocations with burden What is the pronunciation of burden?

Translations of burden

in Chinese (Traditional) 負荷，重負, 負擔，重擔, 煩擾… See more in Chinese (Simplified) 负荷，重负, 负担，重担, 烦扰… See more in Spanish carga, cargar, carga [feminine]… See more in Portuguese obrigação, estorvo, fardo… See more in Marathi in Japanese in Turkish in French in Catalan in Dutch in Tamil in Hindi in Gujarati in Danish in Swedish in Malay in German in Norwegian in Urdu in Ukrainian in Telugu in Bengali in Czech in Indonesian in Thai in Vietnamese in Polish in Korean in Italian ओझे… See more （精神的な）重荷, 負担, ～に負担をかける… See more ağır, yük, sorumluluk… See more fardeau [masculine], charge [feminine], accabler… See more càrrega, pes, carregar… See more last, druk, vracht… See more நீங்கள் சுமக்கும் ஒரு கனமான சுமை, நீங்கள் சமாளிக்க அல்லது கவலைப்பட வேண்டிய கடினமான அல்லது விரும்பத்தகாத ஒன்று… See more बोझ, मुश्किल या अप्रिय चीज़… See more ભાર, બોજ… See more byrde, bebyrde… See more börda, last, betunga… See more beban cukai, beban, membebani… See more die Bürde, die Last, belasten… See more byrde [masculine], bør [masculine], bebyrde… See more بوجھ, مشکل صورت حال جو بوجھ محسوس ہوتی ہے… See more тягар, вага, ноша… See more భారం, మీరు వ్యవహరించాల్సిన లేక ఆందోళన చెందాల్సిన కష్టమైన లేక అసహ్యకరమైన ఏదో… See more ভার, বোঝা… See more břímě, tíha, břemeno… See more beban, membebankan… See more ภาระ, สิ่งที่ต้องแบกขึ้นเขา, รับภาระ… See more gánh nặng (thuế), gánh nặng, đè nặng lên… See more ciężar, brzemię, obciążyć… See more 짐, 짐을 지우다… See more peso, caricare, oberare… See more Need a translator?

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Burberry burble burbled burbling burden burden someone with something burdened burdening burdensome {{#randomImageQuizHook.filename}} {{#randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes Try a quiz now {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{^randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.filename}}

More meanings of burden

• beast of burden
• burden of proof
• debt burden
• tax burden
• financial burden
• burden someone with something
• beast of burden idiom

See all meanings

• beast of burden idiom
• the burden of proof idiom
• lighten someone's burden, load, etc. phrase

See all idioms and phrases

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UK /ɡəʊl/ US /ɡoʊl/

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